


The Long Lost Soulmates

by SuperBaekTrash



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Angst, Barista Chanyeol, Coffee Shops, Fluff, Friends With Benefits, M/M, Sebaek hookup, Soulmate AU, badass boss Baekhyun, soft, workaholic Baekhyun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-09
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2020-04-23 05:12:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19144243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SuperBaekTrash/pseuds/SuperBaekTrash
Summary: The first words Baekhyun's soulmate would speak to him would be “Welcome to Starbucks. Can I take your order?” but after years of searching for them, Baekhyun gave up, but as they always say, the best things in life come when you least expect them...





	1. Finding You

**Author's Note:**

> I don't usually like soulmate AUs but this prompt was really cute I couldn't resist  
> On the day you turn 18 everyone is given the first words that their soulmate will speak to them. When you receive yours, it says "Welcome to Starbucks. Can I take your order?"

When Baekhyun woke up on the morning of his 18th birthday, the envelope was already on his desk, as his mother has said it would be. It didn’t look anything special, but to Baekhyun it held the answer to the question he’d been asking himself for as long as he could remember. The day he would find out the first words his soulmate would say to him.

He tossed the covers off of him and ran to the desk, picking up the small white envelope as if it was a fragile piece of china.

“This is it,” Baekhyun whispered to himself. He carefully tore the envelope at the edge and pulled out the small piece of paper that was inside.

On one side it had his name printed on in in gold, and when he flipped it over, the words on it surprised him. They were English. It read, _Welcome to Starbucks. Can I take your order?_ It was simple enough for Baekhyun to understand it, but he didn’t understand how the first words his soulmate would speak to him would be in English. Was his soulmate a foreigner in Korea? Or would they meet in another country? The more Baekhyun looked at it, the more questions he had.

His thoughts were disturbed by a light knock on the door before his mother opened it and stuck her head inside. “So? What does it say?” she asked.

Baekhyun just handed the card wordlessly.

“It’s in English,” she noted.

Baekhyun nodded, he was still staring at the envelope in his hands, thinking about how would he ever meet his soulmate.

“Aw, Baekhyunie, don’t be sad,” came his mother’s soothing voice followed by a hug from behind.

“I-I just thought it would be something simple… something easy …” Baekhyun murmured.

“The best things in life are never easy, Baekie,” his mother said.

“Mom,” Baekhyun started, “I want to go to America.”

“No sir, you just got into Seoul University, you are not going anywhere other than there.” His mother put her hands on his shoulders and spun him around. “Listen to me, Baekhyun, no one ever found their soulmate by going out and looking for them. Life has to run its natural course, and it’s only when you least expect it that you will find her.”

 _Or him_ , Baekhyun thought, but he would never say that to his mom. Even though he had come out to his parents years ago, they continued to act as if he liked girls, introducing him to daughters of their friends, asking if he’d met any new girls, talking about his possible future wife. It had initially aggravated him, to the point where he would start yelling at his parents, but then he realized that they were doing it for that very purpose, so he eventually just began to ignore it.

He thought back to when his mother told him how she met her soulmate—his father. According to his mother, she was running to work in the rain without an umbrella when all of a sudden she tripped and fell, and all of her things were scattered on the ground. While she picked up her things a kind young man approached her and asked, “ _Need a hand?_ ” and in the haste of picking things up she had just replied, “ _If you wouldn’t mind_ ,” not even registering that what the man had just said was what had been written on her card. Every time she told the story she vividly described how when she was about to pick up her favorite blue pen that had fallen on the floor, her hand froze and she looked back up at the man, and at the same time, they said, “ _It’s you_.”

After hearing so many similar stories from various people, he began to wish something similar for himself.

He expected the words to be something like, “Let me get that for you,” or “Can I buy you a drink?” or “The weather seems nice today,” anything really, as long as it was in Korean. 

And that was not what he had gotten.

He’d heard of people who had gotten cards written in completely foreign languages and had to study the language to even understand what it said. His situation wasn’t that bad, but he still saw it as close to impossible to meet his soulmate knowing that the first words they would speak to him were going to be in English.

 

♡

 

During the first year following the morning of his 18th birthday, Baekhyun made it his mission to find his soulmate despite his mother’s advice against it. He began visiting Starbucks regularly—as many locations he could find—but eventually he realized his efforts were futile, so for his 19th birthday, he begged his mom to let him take a semester abroad in America, which she begrudgingly agreed to.

The Starbucks visits continued in America, but the more often he went the more disappointed he got. It always started with some sort of welcome, but it was never worded the way he wanted it to, never “Welcome to Starbucks. Can I take your order?”

Baekhyun returned to Korea feeling defeated and he soon gave up on finding his soulmate. He swore off Starbucks forever—partly because he was so sick of it after having drunk it so much for two years—but also because he was enraged that after trying for so long, he had failed.

Baekhyun finished university and got a solid job shortly after at a multinational corporation in Korea. He was sent abroad multiple times but he always refused to walk into a Starbucks at any country.

He’d come to accept that he would be alone for the rest of his life. He went on so many dates and started many relationships, but none of them ended well. Of course there were people that never met their soulmates and got along perfectly well in other relationships—and in many places people didn’t even care much about finding their soulmates, but for Baekhyun, it had been his dream, and having to face the fact that it would never come true completely broke him.

He became an antisocial workaholic, he was labeled as cold and crude, yet at the same time he was promoted to the position of director at the company he worked at and consequently earned triple his initial salary, not to mention the amazing new office he was given. At 27, he was the youngest his company had ever hired for that position. His coworkers seemed jealous but that only made him feel better about himself.

The promotion at work seemed to lighten his usual cold exterior, but it was nothing compared to the boy he’d been before he was 18.

One year later after the promotion, as lounged in his chair, looking out the window at the gorgeous Seoul skyline, his assistant Jongdae sauntered inside and dropped a file on his desk.

“You’re being sent to New York tomorrow to meet with the U.S. directors,” Jongdae announced.

Baekhyun groaned. He’d just come back from China and now he was being sent to America. He could not wait for his vacation trip to Japan in the next coming week.

“Cheer up, they’re giving you Broadway tickets to three different shows, and the presidential suite at the Four Seasons,” Jongdae said, “Remind yourself that there are hundreds of people that would kill to be in your position.”

Baekhyun sighed and laid his head back. “ _I know_ , Jongdae.”

“I already called Yeonsu and told her to pack your bags. Your flight it tomorrow at 3 in the afternoon, you land in Los Angeles at 10 a.m. U.S. time then take a connection flight to New York at 2 and you’ll get there 10 ‘o’ clock at night because of the time zones,” Jongdae explained.

“ _I know how America works_ , Jongdae,” Baekhyun muttered.

“Okay, Mr. Smarty Pants,” Jongdae sighed, “holler if you need anything…”

 

♡

 

Two days later, Baekhyun found himself in the lobby of the Four Seasons at 1 in the morning, dripping wet thanks to the pouring rain outside, arguing with the receptionist because she could not find his reservation. Jongdae would not answer the phone to save his life, and Baekhyun didn’t know who else to call. In his broken English, Baekhyun tried to explain to the lady that he was supposed to be staying in the presidential suite until Wednesday.

They’d been arguing for what felt like hours when Jongdae finally called, apologizing for not picking up sooner, and explained to the woman the situation in his much better English. Baekhyun didn’t know what Jongdae said to the woman that she finally gave him the keys to his room and had a young man take him upstairs, but he was so tired he didn’t even speak to Jongdae after he was done with the woman to ask.

After taking the quickest shower of his life, Baekhyun passed out on the bed in nothing but his boxers.

The next morning, he woke up to his phone vibrating underneath him. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and hit the answer button.

“ _What_?” Baekhyun groaned.

“Thank god!” was the first thing he heard Jongdae said. “You have a meeting in half an hour! _Hurry up_!”

Baekhyun’s eyes shot open. “I’m going!” Baekhyun cried, “Thank you,” and hung up, jumping out of bed. There was no time to freshly press his suit, so he just ripped it off the hanger and put it on, throwing his tie around his neck, reminding himself to tie it properly on his way to the meeting.

He washed his face and tidied up his hair as fast as he could and ran out the door with his necessities in hand.

Yawning on the elevator ride down he knew he was going to need coffee if he was going to survive the jet lag. Thankfully for him, there was a Starbuck across the street from the hotel, and he ran towards it, not even caring that he was breaking the promise he had made to himself years ago.

There wasn’t much of a line, which he secretly considered a miracle when he looked at his watch, telling him that he had exactly seven minutes until the meeting.

He was going through the information he needed to know for the meeting that Jongdae had sent him that morning when it came his turn.

“Welcome to Starbucks. Can I take your order?”

“Grande iced Americano double shot. _Make it quick_ ,” Baekhyun replied, still looking at his phone. When he didn’t get a reply from the barista he looked up from his phone. He had a sharp remark waiting on his tongue but it went out of his head as soon as his eyes landed on the gorgeous young man at the counter, who looked about as shocked as he did.

For a second Baekhyun’s brain was frozen, then, “What did you say to me?” he asked in English.

“I-I said, um… ‘Welcome to Starbucks. Can I take your order?’,” the boy repeated in a lightly accented English.

“ _No way_ ,” Baekhyun whispered to himself in Korean.

“A-and you said… ‘Grande iced Americano double shot. _Make it quick_ ’,” the boy said.

“It can’t be,” Baekhyun said. After _years_ of searching, of giving up, of destress, of a sense of hopelessness, here he was. Standing in front of Baekhyun. His soulmate.

“ _It’s you_ ,” Baekhyun whispered, trying to convince himself.

“ _It’s you_ ,” the boy echoed in perfect Korean. He scrambled in his pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper, folded up, and extended it to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun already knew what it was but he took it and unfolded it hastily nonetheless. The paper looked old, it was taped down the middle where there was a visible rip, and the lines where it had been folded were deeply wrinkled, but in neat black in the words _Grande iced Americano double shot. Make it quick_. were printed on it.

He glanced at his watch, only to find out his meeting was in four minutes—and he would undoubtedly be late.

“ _Pen_ ,” he said. And the boy—Park Chanyeol was his name, Baekhyun found after glancing at the other side of the paper—looked confused for a second but then understood Baekhyun and handed him a pen.

Baekhyun scribbled down his name and phone number on it and handed it back to the boy. “Forget the coffee,” he said, “text me when you get off.” And he was out, leaving the dumbfounded boy to attend to the next customer.

It was like a giant wall in his heart had come tumbling down. He could feel butterflies in his stomach. He couldn’t wait to get to know Chanyeol. _His soulmate._

 


	2. Lost Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys wanted a continuation so here it is!  
> This is just a little tease, there's more to come *evil laugh*

Chanyeol never called.

Baekhyun was distracted all day, glancing at his phone, that he didn’t even get half of the information from the meeting—was even yelled at twice to pay attention.

But there was nothing from Chanyeol all day, not one text, not one phone call. Baekhyun considered that maybe Chanyeol was busy throughout the day, maybe studying or working, but he couldn’t deny the feeling in his gut that something was wrong. Chanyeol had seemed just as excited to meet Baekhyun, or at least that was what Baekhyun had perceived.

He feared what he would find when he returned to the Starbucks that afternoon. It took him a few minutes to grow the courage to make his way across the street and inside the coffee shop.

It was relatively empty, and his wait in line was short—not enough time for him to figure out what he was going to say.

“Welcome to Starbucks what can I get for you today?” a polite young lady said to him at the counter.

“Chanyeol—Chanyeol Park. Where is he?” Baekhyun blurted.

“His shift ended three hours ago,” the girl informed, “were you looking for him?”

“Yes,” Baekhyun said. “Can you tell me where he lives?” he managed to ask in broken English.

“Unfortunately I can’t, but he’ll be back tomorrow morning, you could try then?” she suggested.

Baekhyun nodded. “Thank you.”

“Have a good day,” she said as he started retreating out of the shop.

The tread back to the hotel was a slow and difficult one. Infinite scenarios were running through his mind—he was almost run over by a taxi as he was crossing the street. His mind wasn’t quite in the right place. He didn’t know how he would suffer through work the next day if he couldn’t find Chanyeol.

“I shouldn’t consider that,” he muttered to himself on the elevator ride up to his room.

His room felt empty—emptier than usual. He’d begun to reevaluate his life for the past few years. It was lonely. Empty. It felt like he was in a relationship with his job most of the time. The only person he had minimal contact with was Jongdae—not even his mom.

He wanted someone—he was in desperate _need_ of someone.

And he knew exactly who he wanted. He wanted Chanyeol.

His soulmate.

The next morning when he returned to the Starbuck across the street, he couldn’t see Chanyeol at first, but he still held a shred of hope that he might be there.

He was forced to wait in a long line, thanks to morning time rush, but by the time he reached the counter he knew what to ask.

“Is Chanyeol here today?” he asked.

“He didn’t come in today,” the cashier informed. “He left with some people yesterday then he never came back.”

“Oh, thank you,” Baekhyun said. “Did it look like everything was alright?”

The cashier thought for a moment. “He didn’t look upset or anything, at least I don’t think so…”

“Okay, thanks again,” Baekhyun replied.

“No problem, is there anything else you’d like?”

Baekhyun shook his head. “Have a nice day.”

“You too sir,” the cashier said, but Baekhyun was already walking out.

Chanyeol had disappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM AN EVIL BITCH HAHAHA  
> Hope you guys enjoyed this little snippet, and I'm sorry, I just couldn't help myself


	3. New Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 5 years later, and it's hard to say Baekhyun hasn't changed...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this update is so late but school has just started and I am getting busier and busier, but fear not, I will try my absolute best to keep working on this story, because you guys totally deserve it <3 (Updates *will* be slow but don't worry I haven't forgotten about this story <3)

_5 years later_

 

“I said have those to me by this morning!” Baekhyun yelled at Jongdae “What do I pay you for?”

“Woah, Baekhyun, calm down,” Jongin said, “Jongdae just wrote the wrong date down in his calendar. He’s human—”

“ _Shut it_ ,” Baekhyun snapped. “I have deadlines to meet—I can’t deal with foolish mistakes like _putting the wrong date down_.” Baekhyun let out a sigh. “You two figure out a way to have that paperwork finished by 3 this afternoon—or you’re both _fired_.”

The two assistants just nodded and retreated from his office to do as they were told, careful not to anger Baekhyun any further.

He’d been very irritated lately— _lately_ being the past few years. Everyone around him was careful not to say the wrong thing and tip him over the edge, though on the bright side, his work was always extremely well done. The CEO of the company himself would often drop by to compliment his exceptional work.

Baekhyun yelled at his two assistants day in and day out but at the end of the day he always felt bad about it and wondered how they hadn’t quit yet—maybe because of the one night a month where they all got shit-faced drunk and Baekhyun payed for the booze.

Jongin had joined the team four years prior, when Baekhyun started to take on more work and Jongdae wasn’t able to handle it all by himself, all after that one fateful trip to New York.

He refused to think about it, he had forced himself to erase the memory from his brain so that he would never have to deal with that kind of suffering again.

Jongdae hadn’t even dared ask what had happened in the trip when he saw that Baekhyun had come back a completely different person.

Baekhyun went back to working on his computer and didn’t even hear the knock on his office door moments later.

“Baekhyun?” someone called.

“ _One minute_ ,” he replied without taking his eyes off of his screen.

“Is that any way to speak to your boss?”

Baekhyun snapped his head to the door, only to find the CEO making his way to his desk.

“Mr. Park! My apologies, I thought you were Jongdae,” Baekhyun said, but he knew the CEO had just been teasing him.

“Oh really? I would’ve thought the height would’ve been a dead giveaway,” the old man joked. He was easily 10 cm taller than Jongdae and had a much fuller figure.

“I wasn’t looking sir—”

“I’m just messing with you Baekhyun, relax,” his boss said, taking up a seat across from Baekhyun. “We need to talk for a minute.”

“Of course, sir,” Baekhyun said. His boss sounded very serious.

“Baekhyun, I’m getting old, and this company just keeps growing—thanks to your hard work, I might add—but I’m not young like you so I can’t keep doing this for much longer,” his boss said.

“Mr. Park don’t say that!” Baekhyun said.

“Goodness sake Baekhyun, I’m not dying. I just think it’s time I fly to Bali for a month and sip cocktails by the beach all day without having anything to worry about.”

Baekhyun let out a sigh. “You were scaring me for a second, sir.”

The CEO chuckled. “I’m glad you worry about me.” He readjusted himself in his seat. “Anyways, where was I? Right, Bali—so, I will be stepping down by the end of this month, and my son will be taking my place. I have been personally training him for the position for the past few years while he attends Seoul University studying business, as you know. I will be introducing him to the executives at the company at our conference this week.”

“That sounds like a good plan, sir. You’ve said good things about your son, I’m sure he’s capable of assuming the position,” Baekhyun said.

“I’m sure he is… but, I want you and him to work closely together, you are the CFO after all. I think he still has a lot to learn from you,” the CEO said.

“I’d be honored, sir. I look forward to meeting him,” Baekhyun said.

“Do you have anything planned for tonight? Perhaps you could have dinner with us and meet him a bit ahead of time,” the old man suggested.

“I’m sorry sir, but I have family obligations tonight. Perhaps some other night?” Baekhyun was usually free most nights, but his mother had been pestering him about meeting his sister’s new fiancé so much that he was forced to agree.

“No need to apologize, there will be more opportunities,” his boss said. “If there isn’t anything else you need, I’ll be on my way.”

“Nothing I can think of, sir,” Baekhyun said.

“Alright then, have a good day Baekhyun—don’t stay after too late and miss your family obligation,” he called as he walked out of Baekhyun’s office.

Baekhyun had something to look forward to at the end of the week. He’d heard Mr. Park speak very highly of his son, he seemed very proud of him, although Baekhyun had never heard his name or seen a single picture of him. Mr. Park claimed it was for security and privacy reasons, which Baekhyun understood and never asked more questions that were not his place to ask.

The day continued mostly uneventful—Baekhyun even surprisingly remembered to go home at a reasonable time to get ready for dinner with his family.

It would be the first time in two years since he’d seen them all together. He’d missed the past two Chuseoks and the past two Christmases—too busy working he’d claimed, when really he’d left work early and drank himself into oblivion by himself in his penthouse.

When he arrived home he showered and changed into a clean suit, then headed out quickly after finding out he was already running late. Baekhyun was always very punctual but with things not related to work he tended to slack off—hence 10 p.m. trips to the gym since he could never wake up early enough to go at the break of dawn, but to work he was never late.

As soon as he arrived at the restaurant, he spotted his sister and his parents seated at a table in the corner, joined by another handsome looking man.

“Sorry I’m late,” Baekhyun said by way of greeting, doing his best to not sound like he hated being there.

“No worries, we’ve only been here a few minutes,” his sister informed. “Baekie, this is Yixing, my fiancé,” she said, gesturing to the man seated beside her.

He extended his hand and Baekhyun shook it. “It’s nice to finally meet you, I’ve heard many things about you.”

“Good things I hope,” Baekhyun said, taking a seat.

“Only,” the man—Yixing—said.

“I’m glad,” was all Baekhyun could think to say. He could feel his parents’ scrutinizing gaze on him but he refused to acknowledge it.

“Joohyun tells me you’re a director at P One Holdings?” Yixing said, politely trying to make conversation.

“I was promoted to CFO last year,” Baekhyun said, not that he’d mentioned that to either his parents or his sister.

“Why didn’t you tell us Baekhyun?” his father spoke for the first time.

“I didn’t think it was important,” Baekhyun said, a polite way of saying _I didn’t think you cared_.

“Why would you think that?” his mother pitched in. “Of course that’s important.”

Baekhyun didn’t reply, instead just picked up the menu and started looking through the wine options.

“We’re getting married in two months,” his sister said to occupy the silence. “You’re coming right Baek?”

“I’ll check my schedule,” Baekhyun muttered, although he planned on somehow making himself unavailable.

“Do your best to come, Baekhyun, it’s your sister’s wedding,” his father pitched in.

“Of course, father,” Baekhyun said. He waved down the waiter and ordered a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, claiming it was his treat before his family could protest.

“Shall we order?” his mother asked.

They all agreed and called the waiter to request their food.

Baekhyun stayed mostly quiet the rest of the dinner, answering questions directed at him but not making an effort to carry out conversation—earning him stern looks from his mother, but he chose to ignore them.

After they’d finished, Baekhyun pulled out some high bills out of his wallet and set them on the table and excused himself before they could protest—taking the rest of the wine with him.

His mother called him later that night but he didn’t hear it ring over the loud music at the club he went to. 

He was feeling particularly lonely lately and decided he was in the mood for a hookup, which was how he found himself on the dancefloor of a high-end nightclub in Gangnam, grinding against a really hot guy.

Baekhyun didn’t even know his name and they were already kissing, running their hands all over each other.

They hailed a cab and kissed the entire way to Baekhyun’s apartment.

Baekhyun bent over the nearest surface as soon as he stepped through the threshold and the man pounded into him.

 

♡

 

Baekhyun woke up with a blistering headache, but on the bright side it was next to a smoking hot man, who was still naked.

Baekhyun bit his bare ass to wake him up and moved his lips to the gorgeous stranger’s as soon as he blinked his eyes open.

“I had fun last night,” the man said.

Baekhyun smirked. “So did I.”

“One last detail though, what’s you’re name?”

Baekhyun chuckled. He’d been so worried about getting fucked that he forgot that crucial detail. “It’s Baekhyun.”

“Sehun,” the man said. “Do you want to grab some coffee later?”

The man was _extremely gorgeous_ , even with his hair sticking out messily, but Baekhyun doubted anything between them would last. “You’re really hot and all, but I don’t really do relationships—sorry.”

“It’s fine, I’m up for just doing, whatever this is,” Sehun said with a smirk.

“Well, well, aren’t you a naughty one…” Baekhyun teased.

“I’m not gonna let anyone else taste this glorious ass of yours,” Sehun said.

Baekhyun couldn’t help but chuckle. “Fair enough.” He planted another kiss on Sehun’s lips and forced himself out of bed. “I hate to be _that guy_ but, I have to go to work. Make yourself at home, just please lock the door when you leave.”

“How do you know I’m not going to steal all of your Rolexes and dip?” Sehun challenged.

“Oh please, you think I wouldn’t recognize your face _Oh Sehun_? Your father owns the biggest car factory in Korea, you probably have twice as many Rolexes as me,” Baekhyun scoffed playfully.

Sehun smirked. “You’re smarter than you look.”

Baekhyun winked. “Of course hon.” He opened his nightstand drawer and pulled out one of his old business cards. “My phone number is on there,” he said, tossing it to Sehun. 

He turned and walked to the bathroom and got ready, taking two painkillers while he did so, and hurried to work—for the first time in two years arriving late.

“Good night?” Jongdae said by way of greeting.

“Better than usual,” Baekhyun replied, and Jongdae looked shocked that he hadn’t been answered with a rude remark.

Jongin and Jongdae exchanged a look but didn’t comment on it.

“What’s on the schedule for today?” Baekhyun asked, taking up a seat at his desk.

“You have a meeting with our latest investor Yoo Jinwoo about his video game at 11,” Jongin informed, “from the description it sounds very interesting.”

Baekhyun glanced at his clock. It was already 10:30.

“Anything else?” Baekhyun asked.

“Mr. Park wants you to finish looking through the other proposals he received,” Jongdae said.

“And another meeting at 5 with Mr. Park’s lawyer to discuss the YG lawsuit,” Jongin added. “That was the lawyer’s last available time, he asked to apologize. You guys are meeting at a Japanese restaurant in Gangnam.”

“That’s fine,” Baekhyun said, “bring me the proposals. If that’s all, you two are dismissed.”

The assistants nodded and made their way out, Jongin only returning briefly to deposit files on his desk.

 

♡

 

By the time 4:30 came around, Jongdae made him detach himself from the papers he was reading to go to the meeting with the lawyer.

Baekhyun was glad the lawyer had chosen a high-end restaurant with private rooms, the change of scenery was nice and they had plenty of privacy.

The meeting was boring nonetheless—it was always the same thing, the lawyer would go over the case, explain his usual procedure, assure Baekhyun they were going to win, and they would part ways after dinner.

Baekhyun called Jongdae on his way home, telling him the summary of the meeting and asking him to transfer the lawyer the money to pay for the meeting.

“Oh, and Baek, some guy stopped by at the office looking for you, tall, handsome—didn’t say his name though,” Jongdae added before Baekhyun could hang up.

_Sehun_? Why would he stop at the office when he had Baekhyun’s number?

“Did he say why he was looking for me?” Baekhyun asked.

“No, it was super weird, just came in asking if you were in your office and when I said you were out for the day he just left,” Jongdae explained.

“Hm, weird… Maybe he’ll come back,” Baekhyun said. “I’m almost home. Goodnight Dae.”

“Goodnight boss, see you tomorrow—don’t forget tomorrow is conference day, you’ll be meeting Mr. Park’s son,” Jongdae added.

“I won’t, thank you,” Baekhyun said, and hung up, driving the rest of the way in silence, mind drifting to forgotten thoughts.

Park Chanyeol.

He hadn’t thought of that name in years, but now it randomly popped in his head.

“What have you been up to lately?” Baekhyun wondered out loud.

He started to ponder what would’ve happened if Chanyeol had ever called him that day. Would they be married right now? Living together? Would they be happy?

Baekhyun shook the thought from his head. “He left—he didn’t want me,” Baekhyun said, trying to convince himself, and the thought of his soulmate was soon long gone.

 

♡

 

Baekhyun chose one of his best suits the next morning, he wanted to look good in front of Mr. Park’s son after all, not that he had any expectations… but hey, if he was good looking, smart, and kind Baekhyun _would not_ complain.

He looked at himself in the mirror, in his royal blue suit, hair neatly styled, a hint of makeup to hide his lack of sleep and concluded that he looked stunning—Baekhyun wasn’t one for modesty.

Grabbing his briefcase on the way out, Baekhyun made his way to work, curious as to what Mr. Park’s son would be like.

The office was quiet when he arrived, still too early for most of the staff—Baekhyun had made an effort to arrive a bit earlier today. 

Baekhyun ran into Jongin and Jongdae in the lobby, who were both surprised by his early appearance and inexplainable good mood.

“The meeting starts at 11,” Jongdae informed as they stepped into the elevator together, “Mr. Park also asked that you give his son a tour of the company afterwards.”

“Gladly,” Baekhyun said, more to himself than the assistants.

“Do you know what he looks like Baek?” Jongin asked.

“I don’t even know his name…” Baekhyun said.

“It makes sense that Mr. Park has kept his identity so well hidden,” Jongin commented.

The elevator doors dinged, and they stepped out together. “Not for much longer…” Baekhyun muttered.

“Review my power point for any mistakes Jongdae,” Baekhyun called, entering his office, “and go get me some coffee.”

“ _Please_ Jongdae,” Jongdae mocked, “of course Baekhyun, with pleasure.”

“I pay you damnit, get on it,” Baekhyun snapped.

“Not enough…” Baekhyun heard him mutter.

“What was that?” Baekhyun grumbled.

“I said _right away boss_ ,” Jongdae called and retreated to the lounge to make Baekhyun his coffee.

Baekhyun dived into work, trying to have as much done by the meeting so he would have nothing to worry about when giving Mr. Park’s son a tour.

By the time he noticed that Jongdae had delivered his coffee it was already warm but didn’t feel like asking Jongdae to heat it back up.

He would’ve been late to the meeting if Jongdae didn’t come knocking on his door, telling him to get up.

He straightened his suit jacket and glanced at himself in the mirror—he still looked impeccable.

Folders and laptop in hand, he made his way to the conference room, where most of the executive board was already waiting. He took up his usual seat to the right of the head of the table and waited for Mr. Park, and his son.

He noticed that the seat across from him had been left empty, and Baekhyun wondered how long it would be until the Park son took up his father’s seat at the head.

Baekhyun opened his computer and got his power point ready, paying no heed to the conversation around him.

Only when it had died down that he looked up from his screen, eyes going straight to the man standing across from him.

The one and only _Park Chanyeol_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a sucker for a cliffhanger hahahaha


	4. Rough Tide

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woahhh it's been over a month since I last updated and I feel SOOOOOOOOO bad. I am so sorry to everyone, I have been super busy with school--tbh it's more like I'm kinda busy and when I'm not busy I'm tired so in the end shit doesn't get done regardless--um tchau anyways, so yeah new update, and I might post another one this week <3  
> Love you guys, thanks for being patient!

Baekhyun was frozen in his seat, even after the rest of the executive board had stood up to greet the CEO’s son.

_Park Chanyeol_.

Mr. Park’s voice made him break his stare. “Baekhyun, this is my son Park Chanyeol.”

Baekhyun muttered a quiet apology and stood up, bowing to Mr. Park’s son politely.

_Park Chanyeol_.

“Chanyeol, this is—”

“ _Baekhyun_ ,” Chanyeol said, and Baekhyun almost flinched at the way he said his name.

“Have you met before?” Mr. Park questioned.

“Not that I recall,” Baekhyun said before Chanyeol could open his mouth to speak, quickly regaining his composure.

He could feel Chanyeol’s gaze on him but he refused to acknowledge it.

“Shall we begin the meeting?” Baekhyun said.

Mr. Park nodded and they all took their seats.

Baekhyun looked _anywhere_ but at Chanyeol.After dying to know who was Mr. Park’s prized son, he wanted to _actually_ die now that he knew who he was.

The meeting felt like it lasted an eternity, even when Baekhyun tried speeding through his presentation, skipping a few slides claiming they weren’t important. He needed to get out of that room as fast as possible and get as far away from Park Chanyeol as he could.

He needed time and space to think about what he was going to do. He couldn’t just pretend he’d never met Chanyeol—

_Oh, but he could_. The plan would undoubtedly fail at some point and Baekhyun would be forced to face his hurtful past but for now that would suffice.

As soon as the meeting finally ended, Baekhyun excused himself to his office as quickly as he could and locked the door before Jongdae could ask what had happened.

He started hyperventilating as soon as he stepped through the door, unsure as of how he had been able to hold it in for very long.

Chanyeol. _Park Chanyeol_ , would be the company’s new CEO. _Chanyeol_. His _soulmate_. His soulmate who ran away and never saw Baekhyun after their first meeting.

He obviously hadn’t bothered to look for him all these years, so what’s to say he actually cared about Baekhyun? He probably didn’t. He’d probably just left and never thought about Baekhyun ever again, and today was the first time Chanyeol even thought of the name _Baekhyun_.

But his expression had said otherwise… _No_ , Baekhyun thought to himself. _He doesn’t care about me_. _And I don’t care about him_.

Knocks on the door disturbed his thoughts and he turned around to answer Jongdae’s repeated questions.

“Baekhyun what’s going on? Mr. Park is waiting for you to give him a tour of the building. Baekhyun, is everything okay?” Jongdae asked.

“Everything’s fine,” Baekhyun replied, “a client just called me and asked to meet urgently,” Baekhyun lied—Jongdae knew it too, “please give Mr. Park a tour of the building instead.”

“Of course,” Jongdae replied, and Baekhyun listened for their retreating steps.

He plopped down on the couch and ran a hand through his gelled hair, disheveling it completely.

“What the fuck…” he muttered.

 

♡

 

Baekhyun stayed locked in his office the rest of the day, busying himself with work so he would have an excuse to not see Chanyeol, despite Chanyeol’s efforts to try and talk to him.

Baekhyun simply asked Jongdae or Jongin to dismiss him every time he requested a moment of Baekhyun’s time.

He knew it was mean, and perhaps a bit rude, but he wouldn’t be able to handle sitting across from Chanyeol and having a conversation with him without breaking down in tears.

Seeing Chanyeol again had made his memories and feelings of five years ago resurface and he’s be lying if he said they didn’t hurt—a lot. He didn’t want to have to face Chanyeol and all of the pain and sadness that came with it.

So he just ignored him, did his best to avoid him, and forced himself to focus his mind only on his work.

Chanyeol eventually gave up after three attempts to speak to Baekhyun, for which he was thankful. He still had to sit down and think for a while about what he was going to do about Chanyeol.

He was one of the first people to leave the office that day, after having finished all of his work early, and thankfully didn’t run into Chanyeol on his way out.

The first thing he did when he got home was open a bottle of whiskey. It was only 4—too early for him to be drinking, but that was the least of his concerns.

He needed to forget for a little while. Forget about Chanyeol, forget about his problems, and just relax.

After three glasses it worked, his head felt so light, and even though he couldn’t really understand what was going on in the drama that was playing on the TV, he was having a good time.

He started playing music after a while, loud enough for one of his neighbors to hear, and he just danced by himself, albeit very sloppily but he was nonetheless enjoying himself.

A few hours after his solo partying, he passed out on the couch while the TV played, but he’d been conscious enough to turn the music off.

He slept peacefully, with no thoughts of Park Chanyeol disturbing his slumber, and only woke up early the next morning, before the sun was even up.

 

♡

 

“Fuck me,” he muttered the next morning, rubbing his head in anticipation for the massive headache he was about to get.

Getting drunk last night had sounded like a great idea when he didn’t consider the fact that he had work the very next morning, and he would have to force himself to focus through a headache.

His hangover was evident when he walked into the office the next morning but Jongdae and Jongin knew better than to comment on it. Jongin just handed him a few files, telling him what he needed to do today, though ultimately waiting to drop the bomb on him last.

“Mr. Park asked that you show his son how to analyze business proposals,” Jongin said.

Baekhyun’s fingers froze over his keyboard. “Come again?”

“You are to show Mr. Park’s son how to analyze business proposals. He said you two can start at any time, he’s currently getting situated into his new office,” Jongin repeated, although Baekhyun had understood perfectly the first time. “What time should I send him in?”

_Never_ , Baekhyun thought. “I’ll let you know when I’m ready,” he said instead.

“Um, Boss, I gotta ask—”

“ _Don’t_ ,” Baekhyun cut him off. “If there isn’t anything else, then you are dismissed.”

Jongin nodded politely and walked off, refraining from asking.

Today was the day at last, when he would have to sit down in front of Chanyeol and actually talk to him, all the while doing his best to pretend he didn’t even know him, or at least avoid the subject of their intertwined pasts.

It suddenly occurred to him that there was _one way_ they could avoid the topic.

“Jongdae I need you!” Baekhyun yelled.

Jongdae burst into his office less than a minute later, stopping one centimeter from Baekhyun’s desk.

“I need to borrow your wedding ring,” Baekhyun said, holding out his hand. “If you don’t ask why I’ll double your bonus this month.”

Jongdae nodded and slipped the golden band off of his finger, placing it onto Baekhyun’s awaiting palm.

“I’ll give it back to you at the end of the day,” Baekhyun said, “dismissed.”

He watched Jongdae make his way towards the door, hesitating. “Jongdae, wait.” It had to be now or never.

“Yes Baekhyun?” Jongdae said.   
“You can send in Mr. Park.”

With another nod, Jongdae exited the office, while Baekhyun waited anxiously inside.

He distracted himself by turning his attention to the computer screen and looking for some old proposals to show Chanyeol. 

A knock on his door caused him to turn his attention away from the screen.

There he stood, suit and tie, hair slicked back, so different from when Baekhyun had first met him.

“Baekhyun,” was all he said, eyes fixed on Baekhyun’s.

“Mr. Park, we meet again,” Baekhyun said, putting on his best fake smile.

“Please don’t,” Chanyeol said.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand, Mr. Park,” Baekhyun feigned ignorance.

Chanyeol took a step closer to him. “Baekhyun, about what happened—”

“Mr. Park,” Baekhyun cut in, “please take a seat, I don’t have much time.”

Chanyeol opened his mouth to say something but shut it instead. He was smart to keep enough space between them when he sat down beside him.

His fingers grazed over the keyboard, typing unnecessary things, putting Jongdae’s gold band on full display.

“We’ll start simple,” Baekhyun began. “This,” he pointed to the screen with his left hand, and went on to talk about the dynamics of the company, making sure to notice how Chanyeol’s eyes trailed his left finger.

Baekhyun was glad he didn’t speak throughout their meeting, at least not about them, always just very in-depth work questions that Baekhyun answered without issue.

An hour had passed by the time Baekhyun wrapped up his conversation, his mouth was dry from talking so much and his legs felt stiff.

Baekhyun minimized all of the tabs and asked Chanyeol if he had any other questions.

“Can I take you to dinner?” Chanyeol said after a pause.

He didn’t expect for Chanyeol to be so forward, especially after he’d seen the wedding ring. “I’m afraid that would be too unprofessional, Mr. Park,” Baekhyun said, quickly coming up with the excuse.

“Baekhyun, please, let me just—”

“I think we’re done here, Mr. Park,” Baekhyun interrupted. He wouldn’t give Chanyeol the chance to explain himself, not when he had already broken Baekhyun’s heart before.

Again Chanyeol opened his mouth to say something but ended up refraining. “Thank you, for the lesson,” was all he said before getting up and making his way out.

Baekhyun let out a sigh once Chanyeol had closed the door behind him and leaned back in his chair.

His first meeting with Chanyeol was finally over. He was surprised he had managed to not break down in front of him, or yell at him for that matter.

The more he saw Chanyeol, the more feelings came bubbling to the surface, ranging from sadness to pure rage. There were times he wanted to yell at Chanyeol for leaving him, for making him suffer, and there were times he wanted nothing more than to curl up into a ball and cry his eyes out.

And occasionally, there were times all he wanted to do was to wrap his arms around Chanyeol and feel his warmth, his touch. That was their soulmate bond talking, that part Baekhyun couldn’t help, as much as he tried to suppress it his heart wouldn’t allow it.

He finished the rest of his work in record time and rushed out of the office, barely even muttering a short goodbye to his assistants.

Drinking two nights in a row was probably not the greatest idea, so he ventured into a sushi shop on the way home.

He ordered the usual to go and ate at home, alone.

Sometime past 10, he still found himself awake, idly watching TV.

Thinking about Chanyeol made him feel so lonely all of a sudden, in need of company.

There was a certain someone he knew he could call to cure his loneliness…

There wasn’t a contact name for it but he knew what number to call, it was a missed call from two days ago.

The phone rang three times before someone answered.

“Baekhyun,” a smooth voice replied.

“Are you busy right now?” Baekhyun asked.

“it’s complicated,” was Sehun’s reply.

That sounded interesting. “How so?”

Sehun paused before replying. “Fuck it. I’ll be there in 10,” and the line went dead.

Baekhyun smiled to himself. No one could resist him.

 

♡

 

After an hour of almost non-stop sex, on every available surface in Baekhyun’s apartment, him and Sehun ended up cuddled on the couch, naked, with just a small blanket to cover up their legs.

Baekhyun was tracing circles on Sehun’s chest with his fingertip while idly listening to the TV playing in the background.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Sehun said, deep voice reverberating in his chest, “why the sudden call?”

“Rough day at work,” was all Baekhyun said.

“Tough boss?” Sehun guessed.

“Something like that…” Baekhyun said.

Sehun understood that he wasn’t going to elaborate and didn’t ask any further.

“What do you do with your life? Drive fast cars, party all day, pick up guys at bars?” Baekhyun teased.

Baekhyun felt Sehun chuckle. “Very funny… Dad’s making me go to Seoul University and study business,” he said. 

What Sehun said sounded oddly familiar but Baekhyun couldn’t remember who he’d heard it from.

“You don’t like it?” Baekhyun asked. He’d studied business and really enjoyed it.

Sehun rolled his eyes. “Of course you’d say that…”

Baekhyun propped himself up on his elbows so he could see Sehun better. “Then what do you like?”

“I like to dance,” Sehun said. “That’s what I want to do but Dad says ‘ _it’s not a career’_ ,” Sehun scoffed.

Baekhyun sighed. “How cliché… Young son of a powerful CEO is being trained to assume the position but he doesn’t want to, all he wants to do is pursue his passion that is completely unrelated to his dad’s business.”

Something went off in Baekhyun’s head but he dismissed the thought as soon as it came to him. 

“Do you have to go to work tomorrow?” Sehun asked.

Baekhyun just nodded his head. He didn’t _want_ to go to work—more like he didn’t want to see Chanyeol—but he would never miss work.

“But maybe I’ll take you up on your coffee—but as friends,” Baekhyun said.

“With benefits,” Sehun added.

Baekhyun let out a chuckle. “Whatever you want to call it.”

“I have to get going,” Sehun announced, “text me where we’re going tomorrow.”

Baekhyun nodded and peeled himself from Sehun so he could get up.

With one last kiss, Sehun collected his things from around the room and went to Baekhyun’s room for a quick shower, while Baekhyun laid back down on the couch and fell asleep before he even heard Sehun leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More fun to come <3


	5. Kiss and Tell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooooooh my god I haven’t posted to this in suuuuch a long time and I’m soooooo sorry. Every time I open word I mean to write more but I get carried away with other wips but the other day someone tweeted that they read my fic and wanted me to write more and I think that just clicked something in me, like it touched my heart you could say so I finished up this chapter and decided I was going to post it asap so here it is!

Dragging himself to work the next morning was difficult. He was already dreading the moment where he would have to see Chanyeol, maybe even speak to him. At least he had coffee with Sehun to look forward to. He wasn’t considering actually asking him out, but the thought had crossed his mind. With Chanyeol around he knew he would need a distraction more often.If that distraction came in the form of Oh Sehun, he would not complain, and Sehun seemed fine with their agreement so there was no harm done. 

When he arrived at work, he went straight to his office, not bothering to reply to the good mornings from Jongin and Jongdae. 

There was a steaming cup of coffee sitting on his desk, probably curtesy of Jongdae. When he reached out to pick it up he realized he still had Jongdae’s ring with him. He felt a twinge of guilt, Jongdae’s husband must’ve been so worried when he didn’t see the ring around Jongdae’s finger—no need to mention the fact that he’d lied to Chanyeol on top of that.

“Jongdae come see me,” Baekhyun called while he turned on his computer.

He silently thanked god that he remembered to leave it in his office so he wouldn’t forget it at home. 

It was in the same corner of his drawer that he’d left it in.

He held it out to Jongdae when he walked into his office. 

“Thank you,” was all Baekhyun said, eyes on his screen.

“Um, boss, Jongin and I were thinking, maybe we need to have our Free Friday Night a little early this month,” Jongdae said. 

“If you’re trying to get information out of me, getting me drunk is not the right way to do it,” Baekhyun huffed. 

There was a sigh from Jongdae. “We just think you’ve been a bit too stressed lately—maybe a night out with some friends would help, and since—”

“Thank you for the suggestion Jongdae, I’ll consider it. You are dismissed,” Baekhyun cut him off. 

“Yes, boss,” Jongdae said in defeat and retreated out of his office. 

His door remained closed throughout the day except for when Jongin excused himself inside to drop off Baekhyun’s lunch, reminding him to eat. 

His salad remained half eaten on his desk after he decided to stop eating and go back to work. 

When he glanced at the time, he realized he was going to be late to meet Sehun. He shoved the important papers he needed in his briefcase and told Jongin to organize his office as he walked out. 

At least he’d agreed him to meet at a café nearby. 

On his dash out of the office he almost didn’t notice Chanyeol when he passed by him in the hallway—he did, but he pretended like he hadn’t, especially when Chanyeol called after him, asking for him to hold the elevator.

Sehun was seated by the door, patiently sipping on his iced Americano. 

“I got you black coffee, I hope that’s okay,” he said by way of greeting. 

“It’s perfect,” Baekhyun said. 

Setting his briefcase down, he took a seat beside Sehun and sipped on his coffee.

“I’m curious, why dancing?” Baekhyun asked, he hoped he didn’t sound rude.

“I just…” he started, “it makes me feel… alive… There’s no way to explain it,” he said. “Don’t you have anything that makes your heart just go off? That whenever you’re doing that one thing—or with that one person, you’re just… happy?”

Baekhyun didn’t allow his thoughts to drift too far, replying with a simple shake of his head. 

“Then you’re seriously missing out,” Sehun said, taking a gulp of his iced coffee. 

“Sehun,” Baekhyun said.

“Yes?”

“Have you found your soulmate?” Baekhyun asked. People close to him —namely Jongin and Jongdae—were cautious never to bring up the subject, so he himself hadn’t thought about it in so long. He didn’t even know if Jongdae’s husband was his soulmate, or if Jongin had found his yet. 

Sehun scoffed. “Fuck no, I burned that paper as soon as I laid eyes on it. I was not about to live my life waiting for someone that was supposedly meant to be with me.”

Baekhyun was surprised by his reply. 

“Aren’t you at least curious as to what it said?” Baekhyun asked. 

Sehun shook his head confidently. “Not even a little.”

Baekhyun had never heard of someone not wanting to find their soulmate.

“What if your soulmate is looking for you?” Baekhyun couldn’t help but ask. 

“If the only reason they’re looking for me is because a piece of paper told them we’re ‘destined to be together’,” he said with air quotes, “then I don’t want to be with them.”

Baekhyun didn’t have a reply for that.

“What about you?” Sehun asked. “I’m guessing you haven’t.”

“I have actually, but it’s complicated,” Baekhyun said, he felt compelled to tell Sehun the truth for unknown reasons. “It just didn’t work out…”

“My point exactly,” Sehun said. 

Baekhyun gave a one shouldered shrug. “I guess they thought the same way you do.”

“I believe that you should love someone for who they are, because you have a legitimate connection—not because of some stupid piece of paper,” Sehun said.

Baekhyun was quiet for a minute, thinking about all Sehun had said, realizing he’d been such an idiot for the longest time in his life. He let out a sigh, and let his eyes wander around the café, just as the bell above the entrance rang signaling that someone had walked in. 

Baekhyun froze and looked away immediately once their eyes met.

“Something wrong?” Sehun asked.

Baekhyun bit his lip. He needed to do something—fast. He ran through his options in your head. 

Coming to a conclusion, he gripped Sehun by the shirt and brought their lips together in a rough kiss. Sehun was frozen in shock for a second but then melted into the kiss, chuckling at Baekhyun’s dominance.

Once his heartbeat had slowed a bit, Baekhyun broke of their kiss and whispered, “Let’s go,” to which Sehun nodded. 

Taking the rest of his coffee, Baekhyun got up and walked to the door, not even waiting for Sehun. 

Throwing one more glance at Chanyeol, who looked frozen in shock, Baekhyun noted smugly, he left with Sehun in tow. 

Baekhyun heard a chuckle from beside him as they walked down the street. 

“What’s so funny?” Baekhyun asked with an eyebrow raise. 

Sehun’s laughter faded. “Nothing, nothing, that was just… unexpected.”

Baekhyun threw him a questioning glance but didn’t comment on it further. 

“Are you busy tonight?” Sehun asked. 

“Mmm,” Baekhyun pretended to think, “no… What do you say we go to my place for a bit?” he suggested. 

“I was just about to say the same thing,” Sehun replied.

 

♡

 

Like always they ended up naked on top of each other, this time on the bed. The TV was on in the living room and they could hear bits and pieces of the dialogue from some drama. Sehun was running his hands through Baekhyun’s hair while Baekhyun traced circles onto Sehun’s chest with the pads of his finger. 

When Baekhyun glanced at the clock on his nightstand he saw that it was barely past 11 ‘o’clock. Right as he opened his mouth to say something to Sehun, the thought went right out of his mouth as the doorbell rang. 

“Who’s at your house at this time of night?” Sehun asked. 

Baekhyun groaned. “I don’t know.” He rolled off of Sehun and grabbed a robe hanging on the door, padding towards the front door trying to keep himself from limping. 

It could only be Jongin or Jongdae, as they were the only ones with the gate code, but they also both had keys so there wasn’t much reason why they would’ve knocked—which meant they rarely did. 

Peeking through the peephole, he was surprised to find his sister standing on the other side holding something in her arms that looked almost like a baby wrapped up in a blanket. 

He cracked the door open and poked his head through. 

Her face lit up when she saw him. “Baekie! Hi!” she exclaimed. “I’m sorry I stopped by so late it’s just—”

“Why are you at my house at 11 at night Soyoun?” Baekhyun interrupted. 

“Umm, so… remember Mongryong?”

Baekhyun did not like the tone of her voice. 

She picked up the small roll on her chest and extended it to Baekhyun. 

“He had pups,” his sister said. 

Baekhyun stared at the little fur ball in his sister’s hands. 

“And what does that have to do with me?” Baekhyun inquired. 

“The owner of the female didn’t want them so now we have three puppies at home, please Baekie, will you take one?” she begged.

“Is someone there Baek?” came Sehun’s voice from his room.

Soyoun withdrew the puppy. “Oh, you have company?” she asked.

“Don’t worry about it Sehun,” he called back. 

“S-Sehun, O-Oh Sehun?” she stuttered.

Baekhyun raised an eyebrow. “You know Oh Sehun?”

“Y-Yixing works for his dad’s company… He’s…” she paused, “gorgeous…”

Baekhyun smirked. “He is.”

Baekhyun felt an arm wrap around his shoulder and Soyoun suddenly turned positively red. 

“Who’s this?” Sehun asked.

“Sister,” Baekhyun replied. 

“H-hi…” his sister stuttered and her cheeks grew redder.

“You didn’t tell me you had a sister,” Sehun said. 

Baekhyun rolled his eyes and ignored Sehun’s comment. “Soyoun can you please leave?”

“Aw Baek, don’t be like that to your sister,” Sehun said. “What’ve you got there?”

Soyoun moved the blanket aside to reveal a furry little head and big black eyes. 

“Aww,” Sehun coos. “It’s so cute!”

“Baekie will you please keep it?” his sister begs.

“No,” Baekhyun snaps. 

“Aw come on Baek, are you really going to abandon such a cute puppy like this?” When Baekhyun turned to Sehun he had the biggest pout on his lips and Baekhyun couldn’t help but pout as well.

“Dogs are too much responsibility, and I work everyday so there’s no way I can watch him all the time,” Baekhyun said.

“I’ll watch him for you, Vivi would love a new friend,” Sehun offered.

Baekhyun raised an eyebrow. “Vivi?” 

“He’s my Bichon,” Sehun explained.

Baekhyun resisted the urge to slap himself. He couldn’t believe he was about to give into adopting a dog just because his hot as fuck hookup was giving him the puppy eyes. 

“Fine!” Baekhyun gave in. “But you have to take care of it when I don’t feel like it.”

“Anything for you babe,” Sehun said with a kiss to his cheek.

“Don’t call me babe,” Baekhyun said to which Sehun just chuckled.

Baekhyun too the dog from his sister’s arms tentatively.

“It’s a girl,” his sister said.

Baekhyun let out a sigh wondering what he’d gotten himself into. 

“You owe me one,” Baekhyun muttered.

His sister nodded with a smile. “Of course Baekie… Good night… It was nice meeting you Sehun.”

“Likewise,” Sehun said.

“Bye,” Baekhyun said and closed the door before his sister could open her mouth again.

“Don’t be that way to your sister, it’s obvious she loves you very much,” Sehun said once the door was shut.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes and shoved the dog in Sehun’s arms. “She’s annoying.”

Sehun sighed. “And you’re too stubborn.” 

Baekhyun just rolled his eyes again. 

“Having a puppy around will make you less lonely,” Sehun went on. 

“I’m very happy being lonely, I’ll have you know,” Baekhyun said.

“No one is happy being lonely,” Sehun said, tone more serious this time.

Baekhyun looked at him curiously. “Something tells me you regret not reading your soulmate letter.”

Sehun just shook his head at that and turned his attention to the sleeping puppy in his arms. 

“You do!” Baekhyun insisted. 

“It’s not about soulmates,” was all Sehun said. “We need to buy dog food and a bed—and some treats.”

“Don’t change the subject,” Baekhyun snapped. “I’ve been in your position before. If it’s not your soulmate relationships don’t work—trust me I’ve tried.”

“I’m not going to let a piece of paper dictate my happiness!” Sehun snapped back. “You know how stupid that sounds?”

Baekhyun shook his head in disappointment. “You’ll just keep trying until you’re sick of it and you give up. And when that happens we can talk again. For now get out.”

“Baekhyun—”

“I said get out!” Baekhyun yelled. He didn’t want any more pep talks from Sehun.

“Fine! Keep shutting people out of your life! Once you realize that you’re lonely as fuck and you want someone by your side, I trust you’ll go looking for the right person.” With that, Sehun set the puppy down on the couch and walked to the bedroom to get his things.

Baekhyun started out the penthouse window while Sehun collected his things and only turned around when he heard the front door open and close. 

Despite being tired and spent from endless rounds with Sehun, Baekhyun didn’t want to spend the rest of his night moping in his apartment—alone.

The puppy looked like he was in a deep sleep on the couch so Baekhyun deemed it safe to leave him alone. 

Changing into his typical night clothes, Baekhyun called an Uber—knowing fully well he wasn’t coming home until he couldn’t walk—and went to the best nightclub in Gangnam. 

The guards at the entrance didn’t even bother being surprised by his appearance and let him in without having to wait in line, that earned him some complaints from the people waiting in line but he just smirked in reply.

His usual seat at the bar was empty and by the time he sat down there was already a gin tonic waiting for him. 

He drowned it in two sips, causing the bartender to eye him worriedly. “What’s up today?” the familiar face asked. 

“Rough night,” was all Baekhyun said, which was nothing short of vague. 

“Bad hookup?” Minseok asked.

Baekhyun shook his head. 

“Are you thinking about him again?” Minseok guessed.

Baekhyun frequented the nightclub so often and sat in the same seat at the bar that the bartender knew his entire story already and was no longer surprised when Baekhyun showed up and got drunk within the first 30 minutes he was there—most of the time the cause of that drinking was none other than Chanyeol. 

Baekhyun replied with the barest of nods, but it was enough for Minseok to know to pour him a shot of tequila. 

“Don’t go too hard, you have work tomorrow I’m sure,” Minseok warned, pushing the shot towards him. 

“Thanks,” Baekhyun replied sarcastically. 

Minseok just sighed, knowing his warning would go unheard. 

After his third drink Baekhyun was on the dance floor, grinding on every hot guy he saw, kissing men and women alike, dancing with anyone that pulled him close. 

He accepted whatever drinks were handed to him—which he knew was a bad idea but at least if he got drugged and kidnapped he wouldn’t have to go to work the next day. It was a morbid thought but that was how much he didn’t care. 

He didn’t know what time it was when he returned to Minseok asking for more shots of tequila.

It took Baekhyun a second to process Minseok’s reply. “Say that again?”

“I think you’ve had enough,” he repeated, but only a few seconds later did Baekhyun realize that the response hadn’t come from Minseok. Turning to his side, he saw Park Chanyeol standing beside him with a hand around his arm. 

“Who are you to tell me what’s enough mister?” Baekhyun teased, all giggly from the alcohol. 

“Your soulmate.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry this took so long guys I swear the rest of the story is coming, please just wait a little bit longer!!


	6. Broken Hearts and Empty Glasses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't updated in a while :(((( I have been writing but I keep forgetting to post!  
> Now I have a more clear vision of where I want this story to go so I will try to update more often!

Baekhyun could only giggle. “How are you my soulmate if you ran away from me?”

“Baekhyun I will explain everything when you start feeling like yourself again, let’s go,” Chanyeol said, beginning to get frustrated with Baekhyun. He hated drunk people.  

Baekhyun shook his head childishly. “Nope, I’m a big boy so I can stay and _drink_!”

“ _Baekhyun let’s go_ ,” Chanyeol ordered.

Baekhyun shrunk back despite his intoxicated state. When Baekhyun didn’t move, Chanyeol pulled on his arm and dragged him to the exit, which was easy considering their size difference and the fact that Baekhyun wasn’t in much control of his body.

“Where are we going Chanyeolie?” Chanyeol would’ve been lying if he said the nickname hadn’t affected him.

“Home,” Chanyeol replied curtly.

“Ooo your home or my home?” Baekhyun asked. “Can we go to your home?” he asked before Chanyeol could reply.

“No,” Chanyeol said.

“Awww _pleeeeease_ ,” Baekhyun whined.

Chanyeol rolled his eyes and didn’t reply.

“Please please _please_ ,” Baekhyun begged.

It was against his best judgement that Chanyeol actually agreed, though he remained silent, refraining from giving in to Baekhyun’s whining.

“Chanyeoliiiiiie,” Baekhyun sing-songed. “Do you love me or do you _hate_ me?”

That was an easy answer. He loved him, no matter how rude or cold Baekhyun was to him, he would never stop loving him. From the moment he heard Baekhyun’s first words to him until then and there, he had loved Baekhyun. Not a day had gone by that he was not madly in love with Baekhyun. The only problem was, how would he prove that to Baekhyun? Baekhyun for sure hated him, hated that right after they met Chanyeol had disappeared, but it hadn’t been Chanyeol’s choice, it never was. He needed Baekhyun to know that.

But for now, his first priority was to get Baekhyun home and in bed.

 

♡

 

Chanyeol was looking through some documents that needed to be signed sometime around 8 in the morning when he heard a noise coming from his bedroom.

Setting the papers and his glasses down, he got up to see if Baekhyun was awake.

When he walked into the room, Baekhyun was sitting up in bed looking around him, taking in his surroundings. “Where am I?” he whispered to himself. He likely hadn’t seen Chanyeol standing at the door yet.

“You’re in my apartment,” Chanyeol replied, hoping not to startle Baekhyun.

Baekhyun jumped a little anyways and scrambled to get up when his eyes landed on Chanyeol.

Chanyeol rushed to his side before he could step out of bed and fall flat on his face.

As Chanyeol predicted, Baekhyun’s legs failed him and he tumbled onto Chanyeol’s arms.

He didn’t try to push himself off and let Chanyeol sit him onto the bed again.

“Why am I here?” he demanded, gone was the giggly, childish persona from a few hours earlier.

“I found you drunk at the club so I decided to take you home,” Chanyeol replied.

Baekhyun scoffed. “Since when have you cared about me?”

“Since always,” Chanyeol replied honestly, contrasting Baekhyun’s rash speaking.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes like he didn’t believe him. “Yeah right. Even when you left me all those years ago you cared…” He looked away from Chanyeol, eyes darting around the room.

Chanyeol hated hearing him say that, hated that that’s what he believed.

“I never wanted to leave you—I had to,” Chanyeol tried explaining.

“Yeah, just like how you ‘never wanted to call me’,” Baekhyun scoffed.

Chanyeol’s heart squeezed inside his chest. “ _No_ , it wasn’t like that—I-I lost your number,” and he realized he’d made a mistake when he’d stuttered.

With all of the strength he had, Baekhyun pushed him back and tried getting up but Chanyeol managed to grab him by the wrist and pull him back.

“ _Listen to me_ —for just one minute. Just listen to what I have to say— _I’m begging you_ ,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun seemed to be searching his eyes for any sign that he was lying.

“You have one minute,” was all he said.

“I ran away from home,” Chanyeol started, not wasting any time, “I was living in New York to try to escape from inheriting my dad’s company—and I managed to live under the radar for a good five months, and then… _you_ showed up— _God_ , you have no idea how happy it made me to find you…” Chanyeol trailed off, reminded of his first memory of Baekhyun, in his gorgeous grey suit and bright blue tie.

“ _Bullshit_ ,” Baekhyun spat, “all I hear are excuses.”

“Baekhyun!” Chanyeol snapped. “ _Listen_ to me, whatever you _think_ you know forget it, you don’t know everything. I can see how much all of this affected you, but you don’t know how much _I_ suffered after we parted. You don’t know how many hours a day I spent looking for you, trying every possible number combination starting with 0-2 85, how many people I stopped in the street thinking they were you, how many nights I laid awake just thinking about you… You don’t know how my heart skipped a beat when I saw you for the first time again on a file on my dad’s desk years ago…”

“Why didn’t you say anything then?” Baekhyun asked, less aggressive this time but still accusing.

“Because…” Chanyeol started. “I was scared—terrified—of _this_ , of you not believing me, of losing you forever.”

Silence followed.

“Please say something,” Chanyeol said trying to keep his voice from breaking.

“I need time. I don’t know what it is you want me to say or do but I can’t right now,” Baekhyun said after another moment.

Chanyeol could only nod and stand up from the bed to give Baekhyun space to get up.

“I can take you home,” Chanyeol offered but he was already expecting Baekhyun’s answer to be no.

“It’s fine, I’ll call a cab,” Baekhyun said, “where are my clothes?”

Chanyeol just nodded and got up to fetch Baekhyun’s clothes.

 

♡

“Jongdae I’m not coming in today,” Baekhyun said to his assistant over the phone on his way home.

“ _What_? Byun Baekhyun _not coming into work_? Am I dreaming?” Jongdae exclaimed in complete shock.

“I need some time to think about some things. Email me my work and I’ll have it finished by tomorrow,” Baekhyun said, ignoring Jongdae’s comment.

“Don’t worry about it boss, Jongin and I will take care of it. Junmyeon is back from his business trip so he’ll lighten your workload a bit,” Jongdae said.

“Email me my goddamn work before I show up there to pick it up myself, I don’t it like when others do my work for me,” Baekhyun snapped. “I just want peace and quiet not margaritas on the beach.”

“Yes sir,” Jongdae said. “Enjoy your rest.”

Baekhyun hung up the phone just as the taxi driver pulled up in front of his building. Handing the driver an excess amount of money, Baekhyun dragged himself out of the car and into his building where the usual young receptionist greeted him.

Without much resistance, Baekhyun crashed on his bed as soon as he stepped into his room.

 

♡

 

Baekhyun eventually found himself at the bar of his favorite club, one of five other people who had decided to go to the club at 5 in the afternoon.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you here this early, shouldn’t you be working?” his favorite bartender asked.

Baekhyun shrugged. “Didn’t feel like going in.”

“Was it anything time do with the handsome stranger that took you home last night?” Minseok asked.

Baekhyun had forgotten for a while that he’d been at the bar the previous night.

Baekhyun groaned. “Don’t even get me started…”

“He seemed nice, what’s wrong?” Minseok went on.

Baekhyun stayed quiet.

“He was my soulmate,” he said after a while.

“ _Was_?”

“ _Is_ , _was_ , it’s all the same… the universe was wrong, we’re not meant for each other,” Baekhyun huffed.

“Don’t say that…”

“It’s true!” Baekhyun snapped. “He’s not meant for me—he left me, without any explanation, and now he’s back, acting as if nothing ever happened and I’m supposed to just forgive him and forget everything that I went through. I can’t do that! Years of my life I spent suffering, destroying myself—I don’t want to go through all of that ever again.”

“It sounds like you’re not even giving him a chance,” Minseok suggested.

“The problem is that I gave him too many chances…” Baekhyun said, picking up the glass of whiskey Minseok set in front of him.

“I think I’m going to ask my boss to transfer me to Singapore for a while. Out of sight, out of mind…” Baekhyun said, and swallowed the rest of the amber liquid, motioning for Minseok to pour more.

**Author's Note:**

> This story IS still in progress I repeat IT HAS NOT BEEN FORGOTTEN


End file.
